As a psychic medium and animal communicator I have taken to Facebook as a way to stay connected with my “fans” and to teach others about what I do and to educate individuals about psychic phenomena and much more.

Since I work so much with animals I have a lot of animal rescue type folks who I am “friends” with.

A while back I went through my friends list and deleted several who had been posting fairly graphic and gruesome images of animal abuse.

I posted about it afterwards and took some flak from some who felt that it was the only way to draw attention to the abuse that is going on out there. Trust me I am aware of it, but having such images in my news feed made me hesitant to open up Facebook when my kids were around as I did not want to expose my at the time 6 year old girl to such horrific images. I took flak for that too, with people saying that I was too sheltering and that I should let my kids know such evil exists. Trust me, they know, but there is no reason for them to be assaulted by such images on a daily basis.

I strongly believe that the tactic of displaying horrific images of abuse and neglect do more harm than good.

If it is so successful why doesn’t the community that advocates victims rights it rape and violent crimes also use such techniques?

How about your news feed being filled up with images of chopped up humans, dead babies with their eyes gouged out, and burned children – with as graphic as possible images and descriptions typed up beside them. Odds are you would be very offended, and yet when animals are displayed in such a way it’s different? How???

Instead of wanting to learn more, instead of feeling the need to find out more about the person who posted such images and what their cause is, instead I un-friend them, and shy away.

While there is a serious problem with animal abuse in this country and the world in general, I feel the proper way to approach the subject is to bombard us with images of happy, healthy animals that make us want to see more, photos that show their softer side, ones that endure them to us – perhaps with a caption that tells us that this happiness is only possible provided that steps be taken to end the suffering of their bothers and sisters.

As a psychic medium who communicates with deceased animals, I can assure you that they do not appreciate the graphic images taken from their final moments or soon after their passing being displayed for all the world to see.

A side effect that most of you may not consider is the fact that animals are telepathically bonded to those who come into contact with them or with information about them.

The very act of viewing a photograph of an animal is enough to establish a telepathic bond with it, as such every time you look at such an image and think about it, you are drawing that animals attention right back to their traumatic experience and making it more difficult to move on.

Please as someone who cares greatly for the animals on this planet, if you are an animal rights activist or an animal rescue cross poster, please reconsider the use of graphic and horrific images to further your cause, I along with many others feel that it does more harm than good to use such images, not only to the animals themselves, but to your cause as a whole.

We adopted a new family member, a kitten from the local shelter and he (Leo) has become a wonderful companion for Annie, (another one of our cats) and he has turned out to be quite the lap cat.

Our new cat Leo

My wife, (Heidi) and I are now the proud parents of a teenager as our oldest daughter turned thirteen this past May.

Having fun on the set of Christmas Yet to Come

The entire family had an opportunity to do something wonderful together that we will always remember – we all were a part of Volcano Theater’s production of Christmas Yet to Come, a steam punk version of the Charles Dickens classic a Christmas Carol. What fun and fond memories we will have for years to come!

Poster for Christmas Yet to Come

I found out this past year that I will be an uncle soon, how exciting for my sister Erin to be looking forward to welcoming into the word her first child this year.

Our orchard was very busy this past year as we harvested plums, cherries, pears, nectarines, peaches, apples, figs, persimmons and dried and preserved what we did not use or give away that was fresh.

A small harvest from the gardens and orchard.

Our garden grew as I added an additional bed and planted no fewer than 49 fruits and vegetables this past year, some highlights include the tomatoes, cucumbers and squash. The green beans and pumpkins, melons were fun too as were the addition this year of strawberries and blueberries. Looking forward to this years garden. 🙂

A Solar Eclipse casting crescent suns in the shadows.

Sky watching here in the country has caught on with our family and we were treated to an incredible eclipse earlier in the year followed by a meteor that exploded in the sky above us with such power that it rattled the windows and felt like a bomb had gone off. Fragments were found an hour north of us and were also caught some great meteor showers. This coming year sounds exciting as there is a comet to look forward to.

I did not travel as much this past year and am perfectly fine with that, staying close to home, family and such does have it’s benefits.

My “practice” has taken off and I now find myself booked several days to two weeks out in advance with clientele from all around the word, this year I look forward to adding video chat capabilities and offering people the option of recording the reading so that they may review them in the future.

This year I intend to get serious about two things, blog more and write a book.

Since 2006 Charles Peden a Psychic Medium and Animal Communicator, (pet psychic) has been assisting people find their missing and lost animals. Through the use of telepathic communication Peden is able to connect with the missing animal and bring forward details only known to the owner in order to confirmation a connection with the animal.

Details such as an accurate physical description, the animals age, circumstances surrounding the disappearance and more may be brought forward to confirm a connection with the lost animal.

Please do not provide a photograph or a description of the missing animal, Peden likes to work with a “blank slate” so to speak.

Peden works with only a name to go on and after the confirmation of a connection has been established, Peden will ask the animal a series of questions to determine what has happened to them and most importantly where they are.

Animals are able to relay detailed information such as the names of towns, street names, numbers, smells and sounds within the area and more to Peden so that a focused search of the area where the animal is can begin.

While not every case ends in a joyful re-union, the majority of those contacting Peden for help with locating a missing animal will either receive closure or find their missing animal.

Most recently a lost dog in Tucson, Arizona was located after the owners contacted Peden to help in recovering their missing animal. They “drove right to him” based upon the information that Peden was able to provide.

Peden’s services do not stop there, he is able to assist with facilitating a “conversational” connection with your animals and he provides theses services worldwide via the internet and the phone.

Many organizations and animal rescue’s utilize his services, attending fundraiser’s as one of the principal draws for the event to assisting in hospice issues and helping out with difficult to work with animals.

To contact Peden in order to utilize his services or to learn more about him and the work he does, visit http://www.charlespeden.com or call 925-360-7469.

Charles Peden lives with his family in northern California in a home they share with two dogs, two cats a bunny among other animals.

Recent Testimonial:

Hello Charles,

Carly returned just in time to celebrate my birthday with me last week. 🙂

One of the key elements in the reading was geese being fattened up for slaughter. You directed me to Slaughterville Road, and a church with a white steeple on that road. I left flyers there and planted a poster at the nearest stop sign. I drove down a hwy in the area that I’d never driven before. I felt very lost and unsure if I was headed in a helpful direction. Its importance didn’t register with me at the time, but I passed a tire shop – a place that uses an air gun/impact wrench type tool that makes noise like what Carly described to you that she could hear. Though I felt I was far away from the right search point, I planted a poster at that intersection. Later I discovered that tire shop was in close proximity to where Carly was ultimately found, only I had approached it from the opposite direction.

The next day I got a call from a woman, Teresa, who had sighted Carly. She saw one of my posters and called to say Carly had been at her house two nights prior. Her son wanted to keep her, but her husband said no, she belongs to someone, let her go back to her home. They never realized of course just how far from home she actually was. Well, the woman and her family live in Slaughterville! I knew we were on to something, so I rushed out there to put more posters in that vicinity. As I was hanging posters, Teresa drove past and introduced herself. She had more news – Carly had been at a neighbor’s house the night before, eating from an automatic feeder! Now we have a sighting only 14 hours earlier.

Later that evening, Teresa called to say she had Carly in her car! She had driven further east of where Carly was last seen, and found her walking down the street. This was at least 1.5 miles from Teresa’s house.

When I arrived at Teresa’s house to get Carly, I noticed the house had dark, muted green shutters – the dark green trim you saw in the reading. Also notable is that they are building an addition on the house – another possible source of the air gun sound – a nail gun?

Your intuitive input along with old fashioned footwork and good-hearted people combined to bring my girl home!

On February 18th of 2012 a first will be taking place at Black Chasm National Natural Landmark.

A group reading with a local psychic medium and animal communicator, Charles Peden (myself) is scheduled for 5-7 pm on this first Saturday after Valentines Day.

Never before has Black Chasm hosted such an event and this will be a first for not only myself, but for those in attendance as well.

The plan is to meet at the cave in Volcano, a “gold rush era ghost town” located in Amador county just about ninety minutes east of Sacramento, CA. After a brief introduction and quick tour of the caverns, we will assemble in the Landmark room and for the next hour and a half I will be bringing forth messages from animals (living and past) as well as the spirits of our human loved ones on the other side.

The first portion of channeling will be what I call an open channeling session where we will not ask for individuals to connect with us, rather I will look to bring forward those who would have not been asked about – this takes care of what I call “line jumpers.” The second half of the group channeling session will involve me calling upon each individual physically present and asking them who it is they wish to connect with and what their message or question is for them.

To ensure that everyone has an opportunity to connect with someone connected to them, I am limiting the seating to 20-25 individuals.

The February, 18th 2012event is fully booked, the next one is scheduled for March, 24th 2012 with more details to be made available in the near future, including how to obtain tickets for the event.

Some back story regarding the location and the idea for holding such an event in such a location.

Soon after moving from the San Francisco Bay Area to the Gold Country in Amador county, we discovered that we lived about ten minutes from a stunning cave. I have nearly always had an interest in rocks and minerals and growing up I was a bit of a rock hound. In addition to collecting rocks and minerals I was fascinated by caves and considered them to be quite adventurous as well as somewhat romantic – in the sense of outlaws hiding their loot in them and so forth.

When I was around 6-10 years old I recall visiting Sea Lion Caves in Oregon a few times and was struck by their size and their beauty. The sea caves were cool, but they were cold and smelly as well as very loud as they are home to a large colony of sea lions. Later on around 11 or 12 I stumbled upon some small caves while exploring the forest around our home near the Oregon coast and while small and relatively unremarkable, I did find the blade of an old Bowie knife in a cave and that was a very cool thing for a young boy like myself to find.

I never did get to explore or visit a cave that had stalactites and stalagmites as well as crystal formations and underground lakes and rivers, so when we moved close to such a cave I knew that it would only be a short matter of time before we visited it.

Our first visit to the caves was nothing short of spectacular, the formations were incredible – it was even better then I dreamed it would be. As a kid when I pictured caves, none of them came close to what my family experienced in Black Chasm Caverns. Now when we have out of town visitors, it is one of our “go to” activities and it never ceases to disappoint.

On of my last trips there, I really enjoyed how quiet it is and how incredible it is to simply take in the energy of the caverns. My first visit I was so worried about getting the right photographs and was marveling at the sights so much that I was not able to simply sit in one place and just take it all in. In subsequent trips both my wife and I began to feel a real connection with the caves energy.

Heidi, (my wife) called the company that runs the cave tours and discovered that they would be okay with an after hours meditation group being brought into the cave. So I called the company back and told them exactly what I was planning on doing – to my pleasant surprise they were receptive and so a date was chosen and I began to notify my clients about the event. After the local media picked up the story, all of the space for this first group reading has been booked and I have already picked a date for a second group event in the cave.

Black Chasm's "mascot" The Crystal Dragon

As you can see in the photo above, there are incredible crystal formations within these caverns. The stalactites and stalagmites are stunning and “Zion” in “The Matrix” movie is modeled after some of the features found within this cave.

The Landmark room is where the group event will take place and is pictured below.

Landmark Room, Black Chasm cave, Amador County, California

Here are a few additional photos for your viewing pleasure. With the exception of the above photo and the photo of Indian Grinding Rock, all photos taken by Charles Peden.

Black Chasm Cave Entrance

When the cave was first discovered by “white men” it was during the gold rush of the late 1840’s. At first miners damaged the very first cavern, having no idea of the size of the cave or of it’s true beauty they took some of the stalactites and stalagmites as well as some of the other formations for themselves. After looking for gold in the cave and finding none – in the small area that they had access to, the miners began charging others a pinch of gold dust to view the sights underground. This continues to this day, however now the fee is $14.50 per a person for a tour, though they may still accept gold dust, should you have any to offer to them.

While the native population of Miwok’s were aware of the caves presence, did not use it for anything. Less then four miles from the caves is North America’s largest grinding rock. This location was utilized by the Miwok to grind their acorns into flour for food. As a hole in the rock became too deep to work effectively, they would scoot over a few inches and begin a new hole for grinding.

Indian Grinding Rock

Now back to the cave … so the cave has crystals (several varieties) and it has multiple chambers. The cave also features underground lakes which are incredible. As you proceed through the cave to the Landmark room, you will pass over one of the lakes which is just visible when you look down into a chasm. The lake is the most incredible color of blue, due to the blue marble that is in the water.

Below are maps of the caves known features, you can see the Landmark room is at the end of the tour area, the rest of the cave is off limits to exploring.

Upper Level Map of Black Chasm Caverns

Map of the lower level of Black Chasm Caverns

You can click on either map above to view them larger. So, as you can see, we will be surrounded by crystals, in a cavern that is just above several lakes, talk about a conducive atmosphere for channeling messages from spirit. The crystals have an amplifying effect upon the energy in the room and the water does as well. The perfect silence, no traffic noises, or planes overhead will be very welcome.

The ceiling of the Landmark room at Black Chasm Caverns

After the group reading at the caves, those who wish to stay for a private reading or who just are not ready to call it an evening, will be invited back to my place in Pioneer, where with catering from Two Alan’s catering, we will enjoy some food and beverages.

Since the cave is a unique location that is very fragile, there are some basic ground rules and things to consider.

Do Not Touch any of the cave features or walls, the cave is still growing and the oils on our fingers can cause serious stunting of any further growth where we touched a feature. The cave has a walkway that is on the edge of the chasm, dropping anything into the chasm will result in immediate removal from the cave as well as requiring the staff to rappel down into it’s depths to retrieve whatever may have been dropped.

There are no restrooms in the cave, do not drink plenty of fluids before going in. Leaving the group will require an escort back to the surface in order to use the restrooms.

The cave is 57 degrees year around and so you will want to dress accordingly.

There are no chairs and chairs cannot be brought in, as such it is advised that you bring a small pillow to sit on for the event.

Cameras are suggested as you will want to document this experience and if lucky you too will get some great shots of some of the wonderful features in this cave.

To learn more about Black Chasm National Natural Landmark visit www.blackchasmcavern.com, to learn more about psychic medium and animal communicator Charles Peden and or to sign up for his next Black Chasm Group Reading, visit www.charlespeden.com.

The evening was a big success, more about the event, including additional photos, can be found here.

Recently I had a most unusual experience during a reading. My client was asking about career choices and after discussing several business opportunities a question about their present employment was brought up. The question was along the lines of “How do you see my present employment, what can you pick up with regards to it?”After focusing on my client’s inquiry I suddenly felt as if I were a screw, when I thought of my body, it seemed to be metal with threads and a point at the bottom, as depicted in the photo of a screw seen above. I then felt a pressure on the top of my head and had the sensation of being screwed down and into the chair I was sitting on. The sensation and the novelty of this “visceral vision” was so intense I had to ask the obvious.

I asked my client if they had a sense that someone at work was trying to screw them over. He replied that was very possible, did I have a name? I heard the name “Jeff” and my client replied that there was no one by the name of Jeff that he worked with. As I could “see” what Jeff looked like, I figured it would help if I described what this “Jeff” looked like and perhaps then he would know who I was referring to.

I described this gentleman with short black hair, a bit on the slender side with pasty skin. Right away my client exclaimed that they knew them and had worked with them at the company he was at, however Jeff had quit six years ago as he had been diagnosed with cancer.

My client then revealed that he and Jeff had not liked each other and that it had gotten ugly at times with him. Upper management was aware of this and my client was still getting “screwed” by the company’s impression of him that had been partly forged by his difficulties with a fellow co-worker, Jeff. Regardless of who started the animosity between them, the fact was that it had tarnished my clients image and he was continuing to suffer as a result.

Jeff to the best of my knowledge is still alive, however he was bitter and lashed out at my client, both directly and from afar. Now my client knows why he felt so unhappy at work, or at least a part of it . After the reading, my client expressed great relief and a sense of weight being lifted as now he knows what was gnawing at him and now is able to move on, making his remaining time with the company more palatable.

Much of the work I do involves images and physical as well as emotions feelings being relayed to me. This is the first time I have felt like I was an “inanimate” object and not only that, but the sensation that came along with it – the sense of being screwed really put this channeling “over the top” in my book. Not only did I get a sense of being screwed, I also “nailed” (pardon the pun) the description and name of the disgruntled former co-worker. It’s details like that being brought forward that add more “weight” to the other information that comes forward, yet that is harder to get a conformation or verification on. When seeking answers, we are looking for the unknown, in order to give more credence to the unknown it is helpful to have it anchored in confirmed details.

For more information about myself and the work I do as a Psychic Medium & Animal Communicator I encourage you to visit my web site at www.charlespeden.com. There you may read about the services I offer, check out testimonials from clients and more.

(Please Note: Some details and names have been changed to protect the identities of those involved.)

Chicago has slowly but surely been winning me over. My recent trip was filled with warmth and hospitality that I have begun to associate with the Windy City. My second trip to Chicago in as many years began with a missing dog and ended up in the stables of a horse barn in Beecher. During my stay I headlined the launch party for K94keeps.org – a new Chicago area dog rescue group and put on an animal communication clinic for the ABU Arabian Horse Club in Beecher, IL. In my travels I came into contact with some wonderful people and made new friends, best of all I changed several lives and communicated with dozens of animals, living and past including cats, dogs, horses a monkey and even a lama.

In early August this year Kristin Yoshida lost her dog Milo in Chicago. When she contacted me to locate him I was successful in making contact with him and having him lead us directly to him. He told me the area where he went missing, showed me where he was. He was in a hurry to get rescued, he told me that he was stuck in a parking garage. His leash was jammed under the tire of a vehicle that he described as a cross between an SUV and a sedan. Milo said that the vehicle was white with black and green company logo/lettering on it. He said that he could not vocalize because his collar had gotten tight around his neck in his efforts to free himself. When he was found, he was as I had described, underneath a white Enterprise rent a van.

The story of his recovery was big news as was the story of his disappearance. That night Milo’s story was on TV http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=news%2Flocal&id=8295871 and I was once again happy to see an animal rescued due to my ability to communicate with them telepathically. The building where he lived was buzzing with the news of his amazing story and pretty soon one of the individuals who works at the building contacted me about her animals, several cats and horses. She was very happy with the connections I provided for her and she asked if I could connect with her boarders and their horses.

Soon after her initial “reading” she arranged a get together at her stables and the phone was passed around with me connecting everyone present to the horses in front of them. At one point a horse who had passed came through, gave us his physical description and age and then delivered one of the most touching messages I have delivered in some time. The horse said, “When it is your turn to cross over to the other side, I will greet you and carry you across on my back.”

Milo has been going to Bark Avenue Playcare for awhile and Daniel and Amy mentioned that they were launching a dog rescue group called K94keeps.org. After adopting out and helping around 150 dogs over the past few years they along with a few others got together and founded the dog rescue group. To celebrate the launch of their non-profit dog rescue, they wanted to throw a party/fundraiser and thought I would be a great additional to their event.

One of the woman who I connected to her horses over the phone was connected to the ABU Arabian Horse Club and asked if I could put on a clinic for them. So with another missing dog out there, and events lined up I booked a flight and headed out to Chicago.

With my coming out to Chicago, I figured I would have one last chance to try and bring in a missing dog named Queenie, I had been volunteering my time over the phone to search for her and after hitting several snags felt as though we might finally have a chance of connecting with her. In my experience if an animal wants to be found, they typically cooperate fully, provide detail as to their whereabouts and are recovered fairly quickly or within the time frame they specify. Queenie had not cooperated from the beginning.

What had started out as your typical simple missing animal case had taken on a whole new dimension. Queenie took off near O’Hare airport in Wood Dale and belonged to a truck driver based in Oregon, over 2,000 miles away. Queenie, a “blue” Queensland Healer or cattle dog with a stubby tail had been caught twice, but gave each person the slip. She clearly did not want to be caught.

Shortly after getting involved in the search for her, it became apparent to me that the clues to her location were coming from someone else and not the dog. After having no sightings for over a week I was successful in pulling the search teams out of the wrong town and placing them within less than an hour of her whereabouts. Once the searchers converged on a park that I had led them to, a police officer stopped them and asked them what they were doing. When shown the missing poster he reported having seen the dog himself not more than 45 minutes earlier at an intersection about a block or two away.

With her within a short distance of the search teams she again gave those trying to help return her to her owner the slip, under the cover of darkness she disappeared into a nearby forest preserve. A few months later with winter fast approaching and a trip to Chicago taking place I decided to reach out and try and connect with her, so as to bring her in before the first snows had fallen.

Making contact with information concerning her possible whereabouts and having received no additional sightings since the last time she gave us the slip, a team was assembled and a location to focus on was brought to our attention. This time the search area was another forest preserve, a bit west of the last area she was seen in and far enough from the airport so that the noise of the planes was not as intense. Most importantly it was the type of environment that Queenie could easily survive in and stay hidden from those attempting to bring her in.

After searchers checked out the new location to no avail I figured that I would throw a “hail Mary” pass and try and locate her myself, in person.

So, with two events, private readings being booked, and a missing dog to locate, I drove to the airport in Sacramento and on a stormy Thursday boarded a flight to Denver where after a layover of a few hours I would be flying on to Chicago, Midway. Airplanes are entertaining in the sense that you are afforded a group of strangers who must spend several hours together in cramped quarters. Sometimes I will channel animals connected to those who I am sitting with. On one of the flights, a woman who had a fear of flying was flying with her daughter of college age. He daughter kept trying to calm her down and she was nervous about everything that was going on in the plane, she kept asking if various sounds etc., were normal.

After we had taken off I revealed what kind of work I do. The woman and her daughter asked about one of their animals. In attempting to make a connection I saw an older screen door that had a wooden frame and that opened outward on hinges. Bother the woman and her daughter said that they did not have a screen door like that, theirs was a slider. I then heard the number 16 to which I saw a cat being connected to it and the screen door. The woman then told me that she had a screen door like the one I described at their last house and that a cat who would be 16 now had gone missing outside that very door.

The flight went by very quickly and after landing the woman and daughter expressed appreciation for the connections as well as the very distracting conversation which kept her from panicking on the flight. She mentioned that on a previous flight she ended up on the floor of the aircraft with a flight attendant holding her. Once I had exited the aircraft and met my host for my stay in the Chicago area, I picked up my luggage and we drove a little over an hour to the south of Chicago, to a town called Beecher.

For the duration of my stay I was the a guest at a private residence among the cornfields and horse ranches on the outskirts of Beecher, about a city block from the state line with Indiana. When we pulled up to the 100 year old farmhouse I was staying at I briefly was concerned that there might be a presence in the house, to my relief it was ghost free and I found myself soon making good friends with a dog named Johnson. Chris and Diana showed me great warmth and hospitality and I greatly enjoyed my stay at the farm house. It was like a bed and breakfast, I quickly adjusted to central time and enjoyed my morning cup of coffee while taking in the view of the fields and gently rolling hills.

After sleeping in the first morning, I went over to the stables and met the horses and barn cats. Later that Friday evening I had the fundraiser I was doing for the dog rescue up in the city, but for now I was free to connect with the horses that I had only previously met telepathically. Several of the cats and horses connected with me and I greatly enjoyed my morning and afternoon. I had a few phone readings that I knocked out from the house and then after a bit we headed up to Chicago Party Animals on Fulton in Chicago where the fundraiser party was taking place. I had a few private in person readings before the event got underway and with not a minute to spare we made it to the venue.

The private readings went very well and then it was time for the fundraiser to get underway. People were hunting for parking, getting stuck in traffic and so we started late as people were still arriving. After a quick introduction by Daniel, I went on and after a brief lecture and had fielded a few general questions, I began the portion of the evening that everyone had been waiting for.

An open channeling session is what I call it when I simply bring through animals that I see coming in of their own accord, and not necessarily those that people are wishing to connect with. By doing an open session I can for the most part eliminate what I call “line jumpers” or those who show up on occasion instead of the individual I am being asked to connect with. After an open channeling session of 30 minutes or so I will then switch to a focused channeling session where I will call on members of the audience who have raised their hand and who then provide me the name of an animal to connect with followed by a quick question for them. This approach works equally well for living or deceased animals.

The first connection I had coming through was a dog who had been disabled. I saw a harness for the back legs being assembled, but never completed or utilized, like the animal had crossed over before ever using the harness. A woman in the crowd raised her hand and after I called on her, she confirmed that was her dog coming through. She had built a harness for him and just before it was completed the dog had died. The dogs message was that even though he never had a chance to use the harness, that it meant a lot to him that she had put the effort forward to help him and that it did not go unnoticed.

After I was done with the dog with the harness, I looked over to the left side of the room and saw a monkey standing against the wall. Since this was a dog rescue fundraiser I was surprised to see an animal that walks upright coming through. I brought forward to the crowd that I had an animal coming through that walked upright. Briefly flashing on videos I have seen where dogs who have their front legs either missing or disabled, have learned to walk upright I realized that this was no dog. The monkey informed me that they were not a dog or an ape and that they were a Capuchin monkey.

As I brought forward the monkey and described them to the audience, the same woman who had the dog with the harness raised her hand and claimed a connection to the monkey. When she was younger her mother had a jeweler she would frequent. This jeweler owned a monkey that sat in a cage on one of his display cases. In order to entice her young daughter to accompany her at the jewelers, the mother would remind her daughter that once there she could visit with and play with the monkey. The girl began to look forward to her visits with the monkey. The monkey from her childhood was coming through to confirm that she too enjoyed those visits and looked forward to them as well. Very touching.

The rest of the evening was a blur as the connections pick up their pace and as the crowd loosened up and really got into it. After I was done and the last door prize had been raffled off, I hung around a bit and had the opportunity to meet some of the people whom I had channeled animals for. I made some great connections with people who greatly appreciate the work that I do and who themselves care greatly about animals and their welfare. With the launch party declared a success and talk of making the evening an annual event, we left and returned to Beecher for the evening.

The following day, Saturday was filled with private readings for those who had attended the event the prior evening. After spending the morning taking care of email and voice mail as well as working with the horses at the stables, we returned to Chicago. Before connecting with people from the prior evening I had a request to make a house call in old town and we headed out to the north end of downtown Chicago.

There was a woman who had some dogs who were overly aggressive to visitors and she was looking for help in dealing with their behavior. As promised, when I entered the home, two of her dogs went into full attack mode, everything short of actually biting, very aggressive barking and flashing their teeth as well as the whites of their eyes. After entering the kitchen/dining room, we sat down to talk about their behavior, pretty soon one of the dogs came over to me and began licking my hand and saying that he was sorry for his display of aggression.

I realized that there were a few issues that could be addressed. For one thing when the animals would go off barking and showing an aggressive display, the woman of the house would strongly react. She would become anxious and stressed out herself, while trying to get the animals to stop, she would get agitated and seemed to only feed their behavior. I told her that they were simply trying to be good guard dogs and that to help them she should tell them thank you for alerting us to a possible threat and now that you (the dogs) have done so, we can take it from here. In addition, if she and her husband told the dogs that while they are home they can watch things, and the dogs can relax until they are gone or in bed, and then it’s the dog’s turn to keep watch.

Secondly a lot of what was going on was that every guest who came over was subjected to the same treatment I had received and that by doing so, the visit became one about the dogs and their behavior and not about the guest and their reason for visiting. So if they instead put the dogs in time out for such behavior instead of having to explain it to their guests and then having one of the dogs coming over to lick the hand of the guest after the show of aggression, they could restore the visits to being focused on the guest and not the dogs who had figured out how to make every visit from someone into an event that was focused on them.

By rewarding the good behaviors and by setting small goals and by ignoring/properly responding to the bad behaviors and by taking the focus off of the dogs during visits and using a time out room if needed, I expect that in time order will be restored. My favorite part of the visit was when I was working with the dog who has proven to be the most aggressive. I was warned that he has bitten or nipped in the past. He was sitting on his bedding in the dining room, I then asked the dog if I could sit beside them. I was cautioned that when the housekeeper tries to clean near the dogs bedding that the dog becomes very aggressive and does not tolerate people coming near their bedding.

I simply sat on the edge of the bedding and pretty soon the dog began scooting closer and before long a paw was resting on my lap, by the time I was done we had really connected I was petting them as they lay beside me. Even the most savage (acting) animal wants to be loved and understood. I also spoke to the owners about using positive reinforcement with the way that they discuss their dogs behavior. I have high hopes that before too long the dogs will be much more relaxed and open to visits and will only go on the attack when needed.

Kristin, Milo and Charles Peden

My next series of in person readings was due to begin soon and so we left old town for the west side of Chicago and soon found ourselves at Bark Avenue Playcare on Fulton. Above their facilities is a photography studio and we utilized that space for private readings. My favorite connection that day was with Milo and Kristin. This was my first chance to meet Milo in person. I was cautioned that he does not seem to like men very much, however he would not stop giving me kisses for the longest time, finally someone grabbed a camera and got a few photos of the last few kisses he gave me.

Charles Peden with Milo the dog whose life was saved by telepathic communication.

Once done with the private readings we returned to Beecher and turned in for the evening. The following morning we woke up to a change in the weather, for my visit so far, the weather had been in the sixties and clear, now it was wet and windy with a chance of snow being forecast for a little later in the week. We began the day by attending to the horses at the stables and after mucking stalls, feeding and watering them I got ready for the afternoons event that was scheduled to begin around 2 pm. Prior to that I had one in person reading to do with a couple who could not stay for the event, after their reading was done people began showing up and I took a few minutes to relax before going on and doing a lecture followed by a group reading.

The event for the ABU Arabian Horse Club of Beecher was well attended and after my talk I began channeling. The first few connections were a bit rough with people not claiming them right away or with them completely forgetting about the animals coming through until later in the evening. After awhile things really picked up and many horses as well as other animals connected – including a lama. One of my favorite connections was this large black stallion that came through early on, he was bringing forward a message about how much he was sorry for having thrown his person and injuring them. No one claimed a connection to him until a gentleman arrived late. He jokingly asked his wife if “Cricket” had come through apologizing about the “moonshot” bucking he had delivered to the gentleman and the subsequent injury he received. I realized that this was the horse that had not yet been claimed and sure enough we got a confirmation.

After the event was done I had several private readings to attend to. One of my favorite private sessions involved a woman’s mother who I saw standing behind her daughter during the private session. When I described the woman and her style of glasses, the woman confirmed that was indeed her mother with her and that she was very much aware of her presence in her life, since her passing. After everyone had left we turned in for the evening and I began thinking about what I had scheduled for the next day – going out in person and looking for Queenie the missing dog.

Monday morning was foggy and cool, we drove nearly two hours away and to Mallard Lake Preserve east of O’Hare. We met up with a few other searchers, volunteers with the PACT Humane Society and after trying to get a read on Queenie’s location at the preserve – with no luck, we headed out. I typically do not search for missing animals in person, I simply make a telepathic connection with them and if they wish to be found, recovery usually takes place fairly quickly. Queenie had been missing now for months, with no additional sightings and I figured that this was a “hail Mary” pass, and that the odds were stacked against us, however being in Chicago right before the winter set in I figured it was worth one more attempt.

Prior to coming out to the preserve I had repeatedly told Queenie where to meet us and she had several days to get into position to be easily located. As it turned out she was not cooperating and after a few hours of wandering around in an area that seemed to be to her liking I called off my involvement in the search. If I had been receiving additional details as to her location within the preserve we would have continued looking, however if an animal does not wish to be located we could have been within ten feet of her and never known about it. Greatly disappointed, we left and decided to swing by a pet store and treat our dogs. We had brought Johnson a chocolate lab mix with us and my red healer, Peaches was back home in California.

As we went through the store I asked Johnson what he wanted and he picked out some treats for himself. I looked for a squeaky toy and some treats for her as well. While shopping for my dog I had a telepathic conversation with her where she let me know what type of treats she wanted and after checking out we returned to Beecher. Two hours later in Beecher I was on the phone with my wife when she mentioned Peaches telling her about a squeaky toy, I then told her that I had indeed purchased one for her. My wife said that Peaches had brought it to her attention 2 hours ago. I checked my receipt, I had purchased the toy and treats exactly 2 hours earlier. Diana, (my host for my stay) had overheard our conversation and asked me to ask my wife what color the squeaky toy was, without hesitation my wife replied that it was orange – it was.

Tuesday was originally going to be spent continuing to look for Queenie, provided that she was helping with locating her position, she was not cooperative and so instead I had some time to work with the horses in person. I spent the day mucking stalls, working the horses on their jumps in the arena and feeding and watering them. Tuesday evening was colder than all the other days I had been there and so on Wednesday we returned to the stables and I once again worked with the horses.

One of the horses in particular had an issue with men, Tia was known to shy away from men and she avoided them at all costs, so I was determined to connect with her. This time instead of just feeding, watering and cleaning stalls I also brushed all of the horses and put their blankets on. One of the horses had never worn a blanket before and when I dressed him, he took to it right away without fuss. When I approached Tia she was at first a bit shy, however pretty soon I had her brushed too and in her cold weather gear. She and I connected very well, she responds to a gentle approach and most men had tried to force their will on her which she would then reject. I really enjoyed spending time with her, and all the other horses for that matter.

During my last few days staying at the farmhouse in Beecher I had bonded very closely with Johnson and he had taken to sleeping with me each night, he made a wonderful bed mate and on my last day he was moping about – he’s not good with saying goodbye. As I waited for my flight at Midway, the first real snow of the season hit and I realized I was leaving just in time. My flight home was filled with my channeling animals connected to those sitting beside me and time passed quickly. I look forward to my next trip and to what adventures lie ahead. A heartfelt thank you goes out to those I connected with in Chicago, I will reflect fondly on the warmth of the hospitality that I found in the windy city.

While I don’t really enjoy working lost animal cases, (working one means that someone is missing a loved one) I do find great joy in assisting in the successful recovery of a missing animal.

Working missing animal cases can be very draining, after all every client is dealing with the nightmare of a loved one being gone and are desperate for answers and closure.

Unfortunately not all cases end up with a happy reunion, however many do, they are the ones that keep me going in this tough line of work, and I would like to share one such recent story with you, here is my clients testimonial, my comments are below.

I contacted Charles on Sunday, September 18, 2011, after our cat Silky had been missing more than 35 days. We weren’t sure if she was still alive, and had all but given up hope of seeing her again. Charles’ first impressions were that our cat was still alive, and he saw box-type trucks nearby.

I asked Charles if he could connect with my other beloved cat, Pollyanna, whom had died on August 13, 2011 and ask her about Silky. Charles instantly picked up Pollyanna’s energy. Pollyanna informed him that Silky was alive and seemed to be moving to and fro in a confined area. I told Charles that a canal runs behind my house and it continues right behind a U-Haul truck business. Charles felt Silky was near that business. Indeed she was! Trapped in the canal, unable to escape over the 20 foot tall cement walls on both sides. We placed a trap in the canal, and after 38 days and a strong will to live, we got our Silky back. Thanks to Charles’ God-given abilities to connect to all animals living or passed on, we now have our Silky back home.

Our family highly recommends Charles for any needs you may have regarding animals. He is a kind and compassionate gentleman.

Mr. and Mrs Peck, Concord, Ca

This particular case was difficult to some extent for me as I was concerned about giving false hope where there was none, however no matter how I asked the question regarding the cat still being alive I always got the same reply, a big “Yes!”

Trusting my instincts, the information coming in and the fact that I have brought many other animals home safely I “stuck to my guns” and was successful in relay accurate information as to the animals whereabouts and condition.

When one is dealing with a missing animal it is important that we do not assume what has happened until proof has been brought forward. In cases where the animal has passed, frequently the animal’s body is no longer available to be recovered – as in eaten by coyotes or other animals. In some cases the animal’s body is unrecoverable without valiant efforts such as recovering a body that has been swept out to sea or that has gotten lost in the wilderness with very little in the way of landmarks and roads to guide a recovery.

Another type of case where a physical body recovery is not possible is where the animal chooses to shield us from the difficulty of their passing. If a passing was tragic, such as being hit by a vehicle, your animal may not wish to allow you to view their body in such a state. By preventing you from seeing this, they are protecting you, and themselves from having to be further reminded of the incident that was responsible for their passing.

If I am unable to reunite you with your animal, or if I am unable to lead you to their remains, I can still provide closure.

Recently I was chatting with a dog who had passed some time ago. The person never really had closure, the animal “disappeared” while he was still living at home with his parents. His folks had put his dog down and did not have the decency to tell him the truth of what had taken place. When the dog came through there was a wealth of personal details regarding favorite memories, past injuries, specific life events and even the location where he had lived with this dog was brought forward. While not a “missing” animal case this was still closure being brought forward, many years after the events had transpired.

The first 48 hours after an animal goes missing are critical. Many times people resort to an animal communicator (pet psychic) as a last resort, while I believe that it is one of the first people you should call, knowing the right area to search makes all the difference. Being able to communicate with a scared animal companion may mean the difference between life or death for them. Had I not made contact with the cat in the testimonial above, and had a large volume of water ran through the canal, I can assure you that cat would not be at home right now, instead they would most likely have drowned and never been recovered.

Granted some animals do not wish to come home, when they took off it was not because they were scared, but rather unhappy with home life and seeking to find a new family or try and make it on their own. Some missing animals join packs or feral colonies and sometimes animals just are finding their wild side. There was a book written along those lines by Jack London, “The Call of The Wild.” When an animal chooses to leave, or while out on their own, decides to try and make it by themselves, there is not much I can do.

If you are a concerned individual, but not the primary party tied to a high profile case, please understand the following; I only work missing animal and missing persons investigations when working directly with the immediate family involved or the lead law enforcement agency involved. You may alert the parties involved as to my services, you may pay for my services, however I will not work any case that I am not in direct contact with the principal parties involved.

I do not provide my services unsolicited, nor do I have a “take” or an “opinion” with regards to any public, high profile cases … yes, I do get called in to work some of them, however not everyone is comfortable with publicly acknowledging the use of a person with my abilities and there is a certain level of discretion and that is expected when involved in such work.

To learn more about my work as an animal communicator and or to book a session, please call 925-360-7469 and or visit www.charlespeden.com.

My heartfelt thanks and sincere gratitude for all the wonderful, accurate and VERY insightful help you gave me today!!

It is such a relief to know that my beloved dogs Greta and Beo will be happier (as will I) if I can move past the sobbing/emotional wreck phase of my grief over losing Greta and focus instead on the joyful life Greta, Beo and I shared — and the many joyous times that are still to come for Beo and me. And hearing from Stella — what an incredible, unexpected treat! She was a breathtakingly beautiful long-haired golden girl (and she knew it), prone to greeting people by clamping her large soft mouth around their wrists. Of course a simple lift of her noise always released her from the target’s arm, but usually not before causing a fair amount of consternation on behalf of the “clampee.”

Thanks too for your generous and wise guidance re my daughter and also for the AMAZING insight re the “pine-like” scent that has dogged me for so long — your “tip” finally allowed me to put a “Swedish great-grandfather” connection on that perplexing smell and the very logical (at least once you know where to look) reason behind it!

You are indeed as wonderful as all the lovely press I’ve read about you — and clearly as caring as you are talented. Thank you thank you thank you for your help in bringing me some deeply longed-for peace as I walk through the difficult loss of my sweet little Greta. I do know one day all my animals and I will again be together, but having someone who can actually talk with and understand them confirm that fact — and confirm that all my past companions are now together, even beyond the grave — makes the losses of this short life on earth so very much easier to bear ….

I suppose that you have not made it, in a controversial field until the critics of your chosen line of work begin targeting you. With that being said, I was rather amused when I read my first piece of unflattering commentary and opinion in a Chicago area online news publication. One of the contributors to the paper had written a piece titled, “Dr. Doolittle works better in movie than in real life.” The author of the piece “Jerry Moore” goes on to write about how hearing an interview with me on WGN radio recently had awoken the skeptic in him. To his credit, I too would have been skeptical listening to that interview as recently as 2006, however my own personal experiences with the supernatural, ghosts, communications from the other side and even the ability to communicate with living animals telepathically has changed my beliefs and knowledge of the world that we live in.

While everyone is entitled to their own opinions on any and every subject , it is a bit different when you make them public in a forum such as a newspaper or TV show. By going public with your viewpoints, or opinions, you are by proxy advertising yourself as somewhat of an expert in the field being commented on or at the very least you are expected to have your facts right and to have researched your subject prior to speaking about it.

Up until this article came out, all the articles written about me are from reporters and journalists who took the time to research the subject that they were writing about. I have provided readings on air while being interviewed on the radio and I have provided readings to reporters who were shocked by the material brought through and then went on to write about their own experience.

Had the author of this un-researched article bothered to read my web site (he claims he did) he would have seen that my very first testimonial is from a woman whose dog I assisted in recovering, she credits me for locating her and says that without my help it would not have been possible for her to have closure, (testimonial is located near the bottom of the home page) In the most recent TV news story which discusses my work in finding lost animals, the owner of Milo a dog that went missing in downtown Chicago is seen on camera saying that after spending less than an hour with her on the phone that I led her right to her dog.

Jerry Moore goes on to say that Karl, (the owner of the dog that is missing in the Wood Dale area near Chicago (which I was being interviewed about)) had contracted my services in locating Queenie, the missing dog. In fact it was due to the publicity surrounding my assisting in the return of Milo that led to my being involved in the hunt for Queenie.

A volunteer at the PACT Humane Society came to me with the story about Karl and his missing dogs, she then paid for my services, enough to cover about two house of my time at my regular rates. However I ended up spending over eight hours on the investigation and donated the bulk of my time. I worked directly with both Karl and his fiance’ Amy as well as with several members of the PACT Humane Society.

While looking for Queenie it became apparent to me and other members of the search team, that she was not ready to come in yet. Through my abilities I was successful in pulling a volunteer search team out of the Wood Dale area and in to the Elk Grove area where we were able to pick up a trail that had gone cold for over a week. Pretty soon I had the search teams within an hour of her location, unfortunately time worked against us and we lost her in a large field as dark closed in on the search teams. After coming so close to finding her, we decided to change tactics and to begin a more aggressive public awareness campaign and expect that once the weather changes and food becomes more scarce, that she will “turn herself in.”

Jerry goes on to comment “But it’s hard to take this stuff seriously, as Peden offers plenty of caveats about his readings. Sometimes he’s able to find lost pets; sometimes he’s not. Sounds like the same chances that volunteer searchers have on any given day.”

If my family member was missing, animal or human and there was any chance that consulting a psychic medium and animal communicator would increase the chances of being able to locate them, I would certainly give it a shot … but not prior to having my own experiences … I too was a skeptic.

Mr. Moore, I am offering you an opportunity to experience my abilities either over the phone or in an IM chat session. I will with only the name of the animal make a connection with them, describe them back to you, (physical descriptions, ages, manner of passing etc.) and I will answer any questions that you ask of them in order to confirm a connection. Please call me 925-360-7469 or email me charles@charlespeden.com and I will be happy to provide you with a demonstration of my abilities.

Many of you have been asking about a book … one that I have not yet written, the good news is that I am now writing it.
The book will be about my journey from skeptic to full time psychic medium and animal communicator. I will share the story of how I have come to be where I am today and will include several good stories from past readings as well as pointers on how you too can do what I do. For those of you who cannot wait for my book to come out, I suggest reading my blog which can be accessed via my web site, just look for the link near the top of the page.

-Unanswered Prayers or Dashed Dreams-

Frequently in life we find ourselves in a situation where we feel that our prayers are not being answered. When something does not go the way we wanted or expected we can find ourselves wondering “What did I do wrong?”

On occasion when we are met by such an obstacle we feel helpless or as though our spirit guides are asleep at the wheel.

Consider this, we do not always appreciate the bigger picture.

Take a look at the example below:

Stella dreams of a life on the big screen. She has gone to all the right schools, studied under the right instructors and has been told that she has what it takes to be a star.

One day Stella hears of an audition for a television series where she fits the requirements for one of the leads that they are casting, and excited about the opportunity to finally make it big, she auditions. (While it’s not a movie, she figures it will give her exposure and lead to something on the big screen in the future.)

The audition goes very well and she feels that she has got the part.

A week later she receives a phone call from the casting director, they inform her that while it was close, she did not get the role.

Devastated she begs and pleads with her spirit guides and loved ones to move heaven and earth for her so that she may get the part on the TV series.

Her guides heed her call to action and miraculously she is called back three days later with the news that she has landed the role, the actress that they had cast had just signed on to another project, something about her taking the lead in a new movie that was being filmed.

Now let’s roll the clock back to the day that Stella got the phone call that she had been passed over for the role in the TV series.

Instead of being sad and disappointed about not getting the role that she wanted, she looked at it as a sign that there was something better out there for her, after all she wanted to star in a movie and not be on the small screen, (not that there is anything wrong with television, mind you … it just was not her dream.)

A day later her agent calls regarding an audition for a movie, the first in a trilogy of movies and it is a major production with a huge budget and big names … they just need a new face for the lead female role.

At the auditions she gets a very good vibe from the casting directors and ends up getting a call back the next day.

After the movies release, she is reading the news and while the movie she just was involved with is being considered for best picture at the Oscars, the TV show that she had auditioned for is being canceled after three episodes.

She was finally realizing her dream.

Sometimes we get too caught up in the day to day struggles of life and find ourselves willing to compromise our dreams. We believe that being told “no” or not succeeding to achive some of our small goals is an indication of overall failure … to live our dreams.

When we compromise or are willing to let defeat control us, we will find ourselves playing second fiddle to our dreams.

When we allow our stumbling blocks to become our building blocks, we can realize our true potential and live out our dreams.

Much of life is about perspective … the way that we view others, the way that we think that others view us is part of the way that we view ourselves.

Thoughts are very powerful. When we view things as being negative or bad for us, we reinforce that perception.

Placebos are very powerful in demonstrating the ability that our minds have to alter the physical world around and within ourselves, or at least our perceptions of such.

When we look at our “problems” it is helpful to put some context to them.

In the work that I do, I come into contact with people from all over the world. Here in America we have a great sense of entitlement or detachment from what is a struggle for much of the worlds population.

For the most part here in the good old US of A, we look at our nation as being the best in the world. Nearly all of us have a roof over our heads, some of us even have land, acres even! In addition to that we almost all have electricity, clean running water and sewers that work. Then there are the cars, not just one per a household, some have several and the boats, the RV’s the motorcycles and whatever else you have for recreational gear.

Now the majority of us here have friends and family who live nearby and are glad to lend a hand in difficult times. No one checks to make sure that you are not from another race or tribe, you are able to travel freely about the country without too many worries. The police for the most part do their best to protect us and to uphold the laws – which we took a part in forming through our legal system which though far from perfect, sure beats the heck out of a lot of other places.

All in all we have it good here, there are drive through fast food outlets and a ridiculous number of services which deliver to your door most anything you can ever imagine wanting.

We take for granted all of these things … when in many parts of the world, such things are simply dreams at this point.

The other day I was providing a reading for someone in Eastern Europe, when I suggested checking the local shelters and seeing if they would be of help with regard to a particular situation, the client told me that such things did not yet exist in their country.

Can you imagine the United States with not a single animal shelter let alone laws against animal cruelty? In many parts of the world that they have no animal rights and or services …

As long as we can avoid compromising our dreams and just settling in order to feel like we got something, things will continue to happen to make a difference towards making our dreams a reality.

Remember that your problems are only as big as the perspective which you place them in.

All in all we have it pretty good here in America, we just need to shift our priorities away from material wealth and instead focus on enriching the human experience on a global level. The happier and better off our neighbors (on a global and local level) are, the happier our planet is.